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"My tattoos are incredibly
important to me, each is thought out over long periods of time. The
script on my right arm is a memorial for my father, it's written in
Irish and reads 'Father, gone but not forgotten, i love you' , we
have Irish heritage on his side and this way I could have this
tattoo, but it's still private, and if anyone asks me about it I can
decide if I want to talk about it. The characters on my left arm are
from a film collection by Studio Ghibli, they also relate somewhat
back to my Father, I have always adored these films and found myself
watching them for comfort after he had died. I also have a large
filigree and rose piece on my thigh, i had this when i turned 18,
although there was no memory based significance for this tattoo, i
had wanted it for a long time and still think its incredibly
beautiful, a sign of my femininity if you will. I have a small cherry
blossom on my neck/behind the ear, this was for the year anniversary
of my Fathers death, Cherry blossoms symbolise extreme beauty, but a
short life. For me, my tattoos have important meanings , but it's
also incredible knowing that you have beautiful artwork on your body
for the rest of your life. I see myself as a scrapbook that I'm going
to fill with memories through the years of my life. "

Rebecca, 14 tattoos.
"My most personal tattoo is in memory of my
wonderful nan, she was such a positive influence on me when I was
younger and I wanted her to be with me forever both in ink and
spirit. Tattoo is
on my leg, it's a personal
thing for me, so it doesn't matter if people see it or not.”

Seb, 22 tattoos.

"Most
of my tattoos were done by my cousin, he owns his own tattoo gun and
wants to become an apprentice.
It starts when I usually have an idea and we sketch it out straight
onto me, when we're
having pre drinks before going out. This then turned into bit of a
going out ritual
- we
would have a few drinks, do a new tattoo then go out. The states we
got into some times, I don't know how we finished them!''

Rebecca, 15 tattoos.
"I was working in a tattoo shop from 16, just
sweeping and making tea. When I was 18 I was learning to tattoo and I
started collecting, none of my tattoos have any great significance, a
few of them were done by myself as it's the best way to learn. The
majority of the work on me is just a collection of pretty
pictures...teapots, cameras birds and flowers..I've never got
'personal' with a tattoo, and I don't know why. Saying that, having a
heart on your knee from your ex gets pretty personal."

Antanas, 7 tattoos

"Roman
numbers XXVI are
26 victoriesout of 28
fights I had in various
kickboxing tournaments and it also coincides with my birthday. I also
have a tattoo of word VALOR, which
means courage, strength, it's like an encouragement for me.I
have a tattoo of 4 roses and word “family” written under them, it
symbolizes my devotion to family and how important it is to me.Other
tattoos, like a woman, feather, compass are just to fill the empty
space, nothing really personal. My skin is still a work in progress."

Beth, 3 tattoos.

"I got the rosary beads when I was 17. I've
always loved catholic art and imagery and have been collecting rosary
beads since I was little. I would alway snap them (I broke a set just
before I lost my virginity. Coincidence?) so I figured I'd get some
rosary beads that were (hopefully) harder to break. My woman tattoo
doesn't really have any meaning besides
the word fate tattooed on her knuckles.My cat tattoo symbolise my love (or obsession) with
cats. I've been a fan of the tattoo artist, Crispy
Lennox for a while and I knew as soon as I saw the sketch of it that
I had to have it."

Heather, 6 tattoos. "Each one of my tattoos is a small reminder of things and people I love.
It's nice for me when I see them as each one is a little memory for
myself. I have always believed about tattoos meaning something to a
person, a lot of people these days seem to follow fashion and forget
that your skin will never be able to change."